Bible Encyclopedia: Abyss

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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ABYSS

a-bis', (he abussos): In classical Greek the word is always an adjective, and is used

(1) literally, "very deep," "bottomless";

(2) figuratively, "unfathomable," "boundless." "Abyss" does not occur in the King James Version but the Revised Version (British and American) so transliterates abussos in each case. The the King James Version renders the Greek by "the deep" in two passages (Luke 8:31 Romans 10:7). In Revelation the King James Version renders by "the bottomless pit" (Revelation 9:1, 2, 11; Revelation 11:7; Revelation 17:8; 20:1, 3). In the Septuagint abussos is the rendering of the Hebrew word tehom. According to primitive Semitic cosmogony the earth was supposed to rest on a vast body of water which was the source of all springs of water and rivers (Genesis 1:2 Deuteronomy 8:7 Psalm 24:2; Psalm 136:6). This subterranean ocean is sometimes described as "the water under the earth" (Exodus 20:4 Deuteronomy 5:8). According to Job 41:32 tehom is the home of the leviathan in which he plows his hoary path of foam. The Septuagint never uses abussos as a rendering of sheol (= Sheol = Hades) and probably tehom never meant the "abode of the dead" which was the ordinary meaning of Sheol. In Psalm 71:20 tehom is used figuratively, and denotes "many and sore troubles" through which the psalmist has passed (compare Jonah 2:5). But in the New Testament the word abussos means the "abode of demons." In Luke 8:31 the King James Version renders "into the deep" (Weymouth and The Twentieth Century New Testament = "into the bottomless pit"). The demons do not wish to be sent to their place of punishment before their destined time. Mark simply says "out of the country" (Luke 5:10). In Romans 10:7 the word is equivalent to Hades, the abode of the dead. In Revelation (where the King James Version renders invariably "the bottomless pit") abussos denotes the abode of evil spirits, but not the place of final punishment; it is therefore to be distinguished from the "lake of fire and brimstone" where the beast and the false prophet are, and into which the Devil is to be finally cast (Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:10).

See also ASTRONOMY, sec. III, 7.

Thomas Lewis

Greek

623. Apolluon -- "a destroyer," Apollyon, the angel of the abyss
... 622, 623. Apolluon. 624 . "a destroyer," Apollyon, the angel of the abyss.
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: Apolluon Phonetic Spelling: (ap ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/623.htm - 6k

3. Abaddon -- Abaddon, the angel of the abyss
... Abaddon, the angel of the abyss. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable
Transliteration: Abaddon Phonetic Spelling: (ab-ad-dohn') Short Definition: Abaddon ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3.htm - 6k

12. abussos -- boundless, bottomless
... boundless, bottomless. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: abussos Phonetic
Spelling: (ab'-us-sos) Short Definition: the abyss, the unfathomable ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/12.htm - 6k

5421. phrear -- a well
... Of uncertain derivation; a hole in the ground (dug for obtaining or holding water
or other purposes), ie A cistern or well; figuratively, an abyss (as a prison ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5421.htm - 6k

5020. tartaroo -- to cast into hell
... cast into hell. From Tartaros (the deepest abyss of Hades); to incarcerate in eternal
torment -- cast down to hell. (tartarosas) -- 1 Occurrence. 5019, 5020. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5020.htm - 7k

Strong's Hebrew

8415. tehom -- deep, sea, abyss
tehom or tehom. 8414, 8415. tehom or tehom. 8416 . deep, sea, abyss.
Transliteration: tehom or tehom Phonetic Spelling: (teh-home') Short Definition: ...
/hebrew/8415.htm - 6k

4113. mahamorah -- a flood, watery pit
... deep pit. From an unused root of uncertain meaning; perhaps an abyss -- deep
pit. 4112, 4113. mahamorah. 4114 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/4113.htm - 5k

6683. tsulah -- (ocean) deep
... sea (1). deep. From an unused root meaning to sink: an abyss (of the sea) --
deep. 6682, 6683. tsulah. 6684 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/6683.htm - 5k

Library

Skirting the Abyss
... CHAPTER XXV Skirting the Abyss. "The first thing for us all is to see and feel the
great need, and to create a sentiment among Christian people on this subject. ...
/.../wilson-carmichael/things as they are/chapter xxv skirting the abyss.htm

The Cross is the Abyss of Wonders
... THE FIRST CENTURY 58 The Cross is the abyss of wonders. The Cross is the abyss
of wonders, the centre of desires, the school of virtues ...
/.../traherne/centuries of meditations/58 the cross is the.htm

The Heretics, from their Disbelief of the Truth, have Fallen into ...
... Against Heresies: Book II Chapter XI."The heretics, from their disbelief of the
truth, have fallen into an abyss of error: reasons for investigating their ...
/.../irenaeus/against heresies/chapter xi the heretics from their.htm

Angels Fell Away, Man's Soul Fell Away, and Thereby Pointed the ...
... Book XIII Chapter VIII Angels fell away, man's soul fell away, and thereby
pointed the abyss in that dark� Angels fell away, man's ...
/.../augustine/the confessions of saint augustine/chapter viii angels fell away.htm

And from Thee, O Lord, unto Whose Eyes the Abyss of Man's ...
... Book X Chapter II And from Thee, O Lord, unto whose eyes the abyss of man's
conscience is naked� And from Thee, O Lord, unto whose ...
/.../augustine/the confessions of saint augustine/chapter ii and from thee.htm

Book vii. On the Useful or the Ordinary
... The abyss is to be understood, as we have said above, as the profound depth of the
scriptures or an infinity of deep water; many springs burst forth from the ...
/.../eucherius/the formulae of st eucherius of lyons/book vii on the useful.htm

Excerpts of Theodotus;
... on the abysses as Thou sittest on the cherubim," says Daniel, in agreement with
Enoch, [199] who said, "And I saw all sorts of matter." For the abyss, which is ...
/.../theodotus/excerpts of theodotus/excerpts of theodotus.htm

The Christ of M. Renan.
... He tells us elsewhere that the name of his God is, "Our Father, the Abyss." This
truly happy term is in itself an exposition of doctrine concerning the Deity ...
/.../the romance of m renan and the christ of the gospels/the christ of m renan.htm

From the Twentieth Chapter.
... from the twentieth chapter. 1-3. "And I saw an angel come down from heaven,
having the key of the abyss, and a chain in his hand. ...
/.../commentary on the apocolypse of the blessed john/from the twentieth chapter.htm

The Binding of Satan.
... EXPOSITION OF THE APOCALYPSE. The Binding of Satan. "And I saw an angel descending
from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. ...
/.../bliss/a brief commentary on the apocalypse/the binding of satan.htm

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) A bottomless or unfathomed depth, gulf, or chasm; specifically, hell, or the bottomless pit.

2. (n.) Infinite time; a vast intellectual or moral depth.

3. (n.) The center of an escutcheon.

Thesaurus

Abyss (11 Occurrences)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. ABYSS. ...Abyss (11 Occurrences). Luke 8:31 They
begged him that he would not command them to go into the abyss. ...
/a/abyss.htm - 13k

Deep (237 Occurrences)
... Used to denote (1) the grave or the abyss (Romans 10:7; Luke 8:31); (2) the deepest
part of the sea (Psalm 69:15); (3) the chaos mentioned in Genesis 1:2; (4 ...
/d/deep.htm - 41k

Pit (110 Occurrences)
... 4. (n.) A vat sunk in the ground; as, a tan pit. 5. (n.) Any abyss; especially,
the grave, or Hades. ... See ABYSS. T. Lewis. Multi-Version Concordance ...
/p/pit.htm - 41k

Bottomless (9 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (a.) Without a bottom; hence, fathomless; baseless; as,
a bottomless abyss. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. BOTTOMLESS, PIT. ...
/b/bottomless.htm - 10k

Apollyon (1 Occurrence)
... In the Old Testament the place of destruction is personified-in Revelation 9:11,
personal forces issue from the Abyss, of which the presiding genius is ...
/a/apollyon.htm - 12k

Key (8 Occurrences)
... of death and of Hades" (Revelation 1:18), also having "the key of David" (Revelation
3:7). An angel was given "the key of the pit of the abyss" (Revelation 9:1 ...
/k/key.htm - 14k

Shaft (13 Occurrences)
... Revelation 9:1 The fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from the sky which had
fallen to the earth. The key to the pit of the abyss was given to him. ...
/s/shaft.htm - 13k

Completed (109 Occurrences)
... Revelation 11:7 And when they shall have completed their testimony, the beast who
comes up out of the abyss shall make war with them, and shall conquer them ...
/c/completed.htm - 36k

Finished (157 Occurrences)
... Revelation 11:7 When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up
out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them. ...
/f/finished.htm - 36k

Sky (278 Occurrences)
... Revelation 9:1 The fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from the sky which had
fallen to the earth. The key to the pit of the abyss was given to him. ...
/s/sky.htm - 38k

Bible Concordance

Abyss (11 Occurrences)

Luke 8:31 They begged him that he would not command them to go into the abyss.
(WEB ASV YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Romans 10:7 or,'Who will descend into the abyss?' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead.)"
(WEB WEY ASV DBY YLT NAS RSV)

Revelation 9:1 The fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from the sky which had fallen to the earth. The key to the pit of the abyss was given to him.
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NIV)

Revelation 9:2 He opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke from a burning furnace. The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the pit.
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NIV)

Revelation 9:11 They have over them as king the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is "Abaddon," but in Greek, he has the name "Apollyon."
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NAS NIV)

Revelation 11:7 When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them.
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NAS NIV)

Revelation 17:8 The beast that you saw was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go into destruction. Those who dwell on the earth and whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel when they see that the beast was, and is not, and shall be present.
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NAS NIV)

Revelation 20:1 I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NAS NIV)

Revelation 20:3 and cast him into the abyss, and shut it, and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years were finished. After this, he must be freed for a short time.
(WEB ASV DBY YLT NAS NIV)

Psalms 104:6 The abyss! as with clothing Thou hast covered it, Above hills do waters stand.
(YLT)

Jeremiah 48:28 You inhabitants of Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock; and be like the dove that makes her nest over the mouth of the abyss.
(WEB ASV)

Subtopics

Abyss

Related Terms

Deep (237 Occurrences)

Pit (110 Occurrences)

Bottomless (9 Occurrences)

Apollyon (1 Occurrence)

Key (8 Occurrences)

Shaft (13 Occurrences)

Completed (109 Occurrences)

Finished (157 Occurrences)

Sky (278 Occurrences)